Since Potions was the last class for the day, Harry wasted no time in running to Remus' quarters. He knocked quickly and went inside when he heard a soft 'come in.'
He found the man sitting on the sofa, reading a book. The professor smiled when he saw Harry
"Harry, what can I—"
"I need to see Dad! Right now!" He nearly yelled.
"What? Harry, I can't allow that. There are rules. Students aren't allo—"
"I don't care. I really need to see him. It's urgent, Remus! You have to let me go." He had to tell Sirius.
Remus must have noticed the desperation in his voice. "What's this about, Harry?"
"It's important, Remus. Very, very important. You need to believe me. I can't tell you what but I swear, I'm not making this up."
"Harry, students aren't allowed to leave without permission from the headmaster, parent or the Head of their House."
"I know but this won't take long. I'm only asking for fifteen minutes."
The man gave in, although reluctantly.
"Fine. But a minute longer and I will have to go to Dumbledore. You refuse to tell me what this is about and so I won't have a choice."
Harry was already inside the floo before Remus could say anything. He knew that this floo could access the Auror Headquarters since Sirius had dropped by.
He threw the floo powder into the fireplace, said his destination out loud and was instantly engulfed by the green flames.
When Harry stepped out of the fireplace inside the Auror Department, he received a lot of surprised glances. After all, it wasn't everyday that a third year tumbled out of the floo in an area reserved for crime and justice.
"Mr. Potter? What are you doing here?" Harry recognised the man after a second. He was Kingsley Shacklebolt.
"I'm here to see my godfather, sir."
The aurors within earshot looked at him funnily. He didn't blame them though.
"And before you say no, it's urgent. And important."
The burly man pursed his lips, contemplating. "His office is that way. But this was your idea."
Harry shot the man a grateful smile and went off in the right direction. He found the door and much like Regulus, he went inside without knocking.
"Regulus, how ma— Harry? Is something wrong?"
Harry bit his lip. "There's something you need to know."
Sirius gestured for Harry to close the door and sit down. "Go on, I'm listening."
"I know about that locket you and the other Aurors have been searching for."
As expected, Sirius raised an eyebrow at Harry with a look he knew all too well. "You know about it? Pray tell how?"
Now for the hard part. Harry bit his lip and scratched the back of his neck. "I might have overheard you and Uncle Reg talking about it."
"I see." Two words had never sounded more reproving. "So what about it?"
"I know where it is."
"Come again?" Very few things could surprise Sirius. Harry was pretty sure this was one of the few times he'd managed to catch the man off guard.
"I'm not lying, I swear. Today, after potions, right before I could leave the classroom, I saw the locket in Snape's desk. I've never seen the thing before but there was just this really weird feeling that told me it was the one."
Sirius' expression turned grim and he ran a hand through his hair. "Damn it. You sure about this, pup?"
Harry nodded confidently. He was absolutely certain of it.
"I'll look into it."
Harry let out a relieved sigh. His father had believed him and he'd gotten away without so much as a single rebuke. Lucky day.
"Now you need to go back to school before you get into any trouble. I'm assuming that you coerced Remus into letting you come here?"
"You know me too well, Dad," Harry gave Sirius an innocent smile which would've fooled anyone else except for the man himself.
"Don't I know that. Out with you little rascal right now."
Behind the light hearted statement, Harry caught the worry.
It was about nine o' clock. Dinner had ended a while ago and Snape was just about to turn in for the night when there was a knock on the door.
Who could it possibly be at this hour?
"Enter."
The door opened and he was greeted by unexpected visitors. His normally sour expression immediately turned into one of disgust at the sight of the four people. But only one was the reason behind his change of mood.
"Black. What are you doing here? I don't have the time to deal with your stupid antics."
Dumbledore, who as always looked calm, had also shown up with Sirius Black and another man Snape didn't know. He was burly and dark skinned. He recognised the last man as Regulus Black.
The younger Black was two years younger than him but they'd never actually been friends. He remembered Regulus a bit. Back then, he had been too proud. He had a couple of lackeys but that was all.
He didn't know much other than the fact that Regulus has left the school in his fourth year.
"Don't flatter yourself, Snape. I have a trial to attend first thing in the morning. Trust me, I'm not here because I enjoy the pleasure of your company."
"Then pray tell why do you grace me with your presence at this ungodly hour?"
"The locket. I'll be needing it."
How did Black know about that blasted locket? Damn that thing was truly cursed!
"How do you know about it?" He wasn't going to try and deny the fact that he had it in his possession. The one thing he knew about this man was that he was exceptional at picking out lies and liars.
"How do I know? Who told me? Those are unnecessary questions. Why do you have it?"
Black brushed his way past and into the dungeons. He went straight to the desk like he knew exactly where the locket was.
And he did.
It took him less than a minute to find the locket. Snape had three drawers in his desk and only one was locked. It didn't take a genius to figure the rest out.
Especially when a small end of the chain was sticking out like that. Black unlocked the drawer and took out the locket. A frown marred his forehead when he picked it up.
"You can't just take it like that!"
"I can. This is Auror business and because you saw the need to interfere, I'm afraid we'll also have to ask you a couple of questions about this locket. At the Auror Department."
"I'm not going anywhere, Black!"
"Look, you can either come on your own tomorrow afternoon at three without a fuss, otherwise, Kingsley will be here with a warrant and handcuffs. I don't think you prefer being escorted from here in front of all the students with your hands behind your back? Let's be shall be reasonable, shall we?"
Snape mentally cursed the man he'd always hated. He had no choice.
"Fine." The word could not have sounded more venomous or loathsome.
"Glad we agree."
"Cornelius Fudge, you have been accused and charged with malfeasance in office. How do you plead?"
"I refuse to answer that question! I'm the minister, you impudent witch!"
Madam Bones was unfazed by Fudge's outburst, Frankly, he looked totally ridiculous in his chair and under the scrutiny of all the DMLE.
His fat face was red and he clearly wasn't appreciating his current seat. His position was up there, next to Bones and the Aurors.
"That's strike one, Minister. If you don't want anymore trouble for yourself then you'll answer the question. Properly. How do you plead?"
"Not guilty."
"So you explicitly deny authorizing the stationing of Dementors on the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry? Or the fact that you forgot to consult the requisite parties before this decision?"
Damn he hated that voice! Sirius Black, the man responsible for his current predicament.
Fudge looked up to glare at the two people: Black and Bones.
"Auror Black asked you a question, minister. Do you deny this accusation?"
There was a heavy silence in the hall.
"No."
"What justification can you provide for your actions?"
Fudge scoffed like the question was funny. "Justification? I think Bellatrix Lestrange is all the justification that you need. She escaped from Azkaban and Merlin knows what she's up to. She's dangerous. Those Dementors were a means of precaution and protection."
"Protection? I'm sorry, Minister but I can't exactly understand what it is that you're trying to convey. You positioned Dementors around Hogwarts so that they'll protect the children?"
Sirius Black was perhaps the only one in the entire world who could sound professional and ruthlessly sarcastic at the same time.
"I told you this when we'd last spoken and I will repeat myself: you obviously didn't think this through, at least not for the children. You thought of no one but yourself. If you'd given this matter even a little consideration, you would never have done this."
"Minister, are you aware of the implications of your choices?"
Fudge swallowed uneasily. "I understand that a student was harmed," he mumbled with a nervous glance at Sirius.
"Dementors do not protect, Fudge," Sirius snapped. "They prey. They don't care who you are or what you've done. When they sense a human, they will attack. It's not the physical presence that they sense as much as the soul. You didn't care about that."
Madam Bones then addressed Fudge. "Your actions and the consequences which they resulted in are unforgivable, Cornelius. The Wizengamot cannot condone or dismiss them."
"So what? You're going to suspend me?"
"Oh I'm afraid that won't be quite enough, Minister," Sirius drawled.
"Then what do you suggest?" Fudge sounded extremely contemptuous.
"A motion has been proposed."
"For your crimes, you shall be removed from office starting this day. In addition to this, you shall serve time, a period of ninety days in Azkaban."
"What? How dare you even suggest such a thing? This is injustice. I will not go to Azkaban for no fault of mine! None of this would've ever happened if that foolish Potter waif had kept his arse on the broom!"
And there came the truth about Cornelius Fudge. He'd just revealed his true colors before the entire Wizengamot.
"Strike two, Fudge," said Sirius, his expression and voice cold as stone. If looks could kill, Fudge would have died several times over.
"All in favor of this motion?" Over eighty percent of the crowd raised their hands. The ones who didn't, were either still afraid of him or on his side.
Either way, the motion was passed.
"Tomorrow morning, you shall be escorted to Azkaban. Until the elections, an interim minister shall be appointed to carry out the required duties," Madam Bones announced.
"The court ends session."
Cornelius Fudge was utterly ruined.
When Fudge looked at Black, the man's promise echoed in his head:
To destroy everything you hold dear.
To destroy everything you hold dear.
To destroy everything you hold dear.
Sirius Black had certainly kept his word. There was no doubt about that.
As agreed, Snape came to the Auror Department at three that afternoon. He had to miss a lesson and had no doubt that the fourth years were probably celebrating his absence.
He was directed towards the Interrogation room where Black and Black were already seated.
He sat down as well on the other side of the desk. "Get on with it."
"The locket, how did you happen to come by it? Last I checked, it belonged to Vol—"
"Don't say his name!"
"—demort. Later, he entrusted the locket to faithful servant Lucius Malfoy who gave it to the late Mr. Borgin for safekeeping. Borgin said that he sold it off. So, are you the buyer? If so, why?"
"I didn't buy it directly, Black. I got it from a man named Mundungus Fletcher. He was the one who bought it from Borgin. Fletcher wanted to leave the country. I suppose that's why you and your extremely qualified Aurors didn't find him. He was gone."
Sirius ignored the jibe. "Why did you buy it?"
"For sake keeping. Obviously. I'd say you should be thanking me for purchasing the trinket from Fletcher. With Lestrange free, anything can happen."
"What else do you know about the locket?"
"I know that it is dark and dangerous enough and can be terrible if it gets in the wrong hands."
"What do you mean?"
Snape sighed and laced his fingers. "Look, Black, I don't know much about that locket. It's evil and dangerous. As for how I know about it, Lucius had talked about it before giving it to Borgin, albeit briefly."
"Why didn't you take it from Malfoy? Why let Borgin have it?"
"Borgin knew Lucius for years. He was a loyal customer. The locket was safe for the time being. And then, Mr. Malfoy was shipped off to Azkaban."
"Any other Death Eaters who knew about this locket?"
Anger flared up on Snape's face. Few people knew about his previous involvement in the Dark Lord's activities and Black was one of them.
"Are you sugge—"
"I'm not suggesting anything, Snape. Who knew about the locket?"
"I don't know. Black, we didn't know each other's identities much less what the other person knew. I got to know about Lucius much later. The ones we know about today are because of trials and the Prophet. The Dark Lord was the only one who knew the identity of all his followers."
Sirius turned to look at Regulus who nodded the affirmative. If there was anyone who knew about this, then it was Regulus.
"Are we done here, Black?"
Sirius nodded. "For now."
Snape wasted no time in getting up. He stopped at the door. "The locket? You mustn't let her get it."
"I won't." Snape nodded curtly and was out without another glance.
Regulus... Regulus... Regulus
Regulus slapped his hands over his ears and tried to block out that horrible sound coming from that bloody locket. It just wouldn't shut up!
That damned thing was tucked away safely in the evidence drawer. He didn't know why he was standing here in this room instead of distancing himself from it as much as possible.
It seemed he was the only one who was affected by the locket. When Sirius had held the locket last night, he hadn't acted this way, nor had Kingsley or any of the other Aurors in proximity.
Regulus...
There it was again!
Why was he so drawn towards the locket? He'd never even seen the damn thing ever before! And more importantly, why was it calling him?
Mentally cursing that this was a bad, bad idea, Regulus slowly opened the drawer and saw the locket innocently resting on top of the case file.
Regulus... Regulus...
Ignoring the tiny rational part of his mind that was screaming at him to stop, he picked up the locket.
He yelped in pain and immediately dropped the locket back into the drawer and shut it.
But, it was too late. The damage had already been done.
Regulus couldn't breathe. His head started spinning like crazy.
He sank to his knees and covered his ears to block out the noise, but it only seemed to grow louder.
He was choking terribly. He coughed heavily. Water.
Why was he coughing out water? He coughed again, harder. More water.
Why were his robes dripping? A second ago, he'd been bone dry and now, he was soaked and shivering.
What the hell was happening to him?
Was he drowning? The thought was silly. Why would he be drowning? He was in an office, four floors off the ground.
He couldn't possibly be drowning!
He screamed in pain and watched, horrified, as scratches appeared on his hands and arms, slicing through his robes.
The blood began to flow from his wounds, making him weaker.
His vision began to blur and the room around him dulled until it was dark everywhere.
Regulus was in terrible pain. His eyelids began to close and before he knew it, his limbs slipped and his head hit the ground with a thud.
He passed out.
Voices.
He could hear plenty of voices but they sounded very faraway. His eyes were still closed. Tightly.
He struggled to open them but they seemed to have a mind of their own.
"Reg? Regulus? A few drops of water were sprinkled onto his face.
"NO!" His eyes wrenched open and he shot up, banging his head with someone.
"Damn it, Reg. Always knew you were thick skulled." That was Sirius.
Four other Aurors were there, staring down at him concernedly. Great. Just what he needed.
Sirius was on the floor, crouching next to him.
That's when he realized something.
He wasn't drowning anymore. His robes were dry and perfectly alright. He examined his hands and found them in perfect condition. Not a tiny cut anywhere.
No blood, no water.
Had he imagined it all?
Then why was his head still throbbing? Like someone was beating it like a drum?
"Regulus are you okay? What happened?"
I was drowning.
But of course he couldn't say that, at least not in front of the other Aurors.
"Just clumsy me. Nothing to worry about." He managed to sound a lot stronger than he felt.
"Right." Sirius didn't believe him for one second.
The other Aurors seemed convinced though and left the room.
Sirius on the other hand regarded him with a raised eyebrow. It was the same look his older brother had given him when they were children.
The one that said: Want to try that again?
"Why don't you go home, Reg? There's nothing much to do other than the paperwork for Fudge's trial. I'll wrap up in about half an hour."
Regulus didn't protest. His head was hurting far too much to do anything.
With Sirius' help, he managed to stand up and reach the floo which seemed a mile away. But, he refused to let Sirius help him till there, not when he'd already made a spectacle of himself.
He flooed over directly into his bedroom and flung himself onto the bed, without caring about his shoes.
The next time his eyes closed, he wasn't sure if he'd fallen asleep or passed out.
True to his word, Sirius was home within half an hour. He found his little brother sprawled out on the bed with his shoes and robes on.
He didn't believe that crap about being clumsy, not at all. Something had happened in that room.
"Reggie?" He went inside and saw the deep frown on the younger man's face, even in his sleep.
Was he having a nightmare?
He felt Regulus' forehead but the temperature was normal.
"No... can't... must go on... creature..."
Definitely a nightmare.
He gently shook his brother's shoulder, trying to wake him. He'd dealt with enough of Harry's nightmares to know that force was useless.
"Creature... crea...ture..."
"Reg, wake up. Come on, mate. Always were a drama queen."
"Shut...up."
Finally! The nightmare had clearly taken a toll on Regulus. He was pale and for some reason, he looked scared.
"Try and sit up, will you?"
It took effort, but Regulus managed it. Now that he was awake, he realised that his head wasn't about to split open and he was at home, in one piece.
"What happened, Reg? Back at work?"
"Trust me, I don't know anymore than you. Kreacher. I need to see Kreacher."
He hadn't seen that house elf in years, not since he'd faked his death and disappeared.
But while he'd been sleeping, he had found himself in some dark room with his house elf of all people. Something had happened and for some bloody infuriating reason, he couldn't remember.
But, there was one thing in the nightmare that he was certain of. He was kneeling next to his house elf, clutching the very same locket in his hand.
Why?
"Kreacher!" Thankfully, his voice was back to normal.
He called again, ignoring Sirius' confused expression. He was equally confused.
"Kreacher!"
The elf appeared. He looked older and worn. His eyes widened comically when he saw the two brothers.
"M-Master Regulus?"
"Kreacher—"
The elf burst into tears. "Master Regulus called Kreacher? Master is not... is not angry?"
Of course the elf knew he was alive. He must have overheard him back when he'd visited Grimmauld Place.
"Why would I be angry at you, Kreacher? What did you do?"
"Kreacher has failed!"
"What do you mean you failed?"
The elf glared at Sirius, through his tears. "Kreacher will not answer Blood-traitor Master's questions."
"Answer, Kreacher."
Kreacher hiccupped twice, looking truly pitiful before he spoke. "Kreacher promised Master Regulus that Kreacher would destroy it. But Kreacher failed. Oh he tried, Master. Kreacher tried very hard, but could not obey Master."
"What couldn't you destroy, Kreacher?" Regulus asked kindly. The elf was already distraught. He didn't want to upset the poor thing anymore.
"The locket."
Regulus was utterly baffled. He recalled no such thing. Why would he ask Kreacher to destroy something he'd never seen?
"Why did I ask you to destroy it, Kreacher? I don't remember ever asking such a thing."
The elf gulped.
"Master Regulus does not remember because Kreacher made... Kreacher made Master forget."
"Why on earth would you do that?"
Kreacher flinched from the sharpness in Regulus' voice.
"Because... Because Master ordered Kreacher to do so."
"Regulus?"
He looked up at his older brother who appeared even more bewildered than him.
That was rare.
"Why did I do that, Kreacher?"
"Kreacher promised not to say."
He needed to remember whatever he'd forgotten. Why had he taken such a decision? Why had he commanded his elf to wipe his memory?
"Kreacher, forget what I said back then. I'm giving you a new order. Give me my memory back. I need to know."
"But K—"
"I know you promised, Kreacher. But I have to remember. I promise, I won't get angry." He kept his voice gentle.
"As Master commands."
Kreacher cupped his hands together and muttered something. When he opened his palms, there was a thin, glowing silver thread in it: a memory.
Regulus' eyes widened and he rushed to his wardrobe where he kept their father's Pensive. Orion had never actually used it. He levitated it to the centre of the room.
"Go on."
Still apprehensive, the elf put the memory into the basin. The silver swirled in the Pensive.
"Sirius, you coming?"
"Are you sure? It's your memory, Reggie."
Regulus nodded with certainty. If this memory was bad, he needed his big brother by his side.
"Look, I don't know what we'll find in here. Whatever it is, we'll deal with it, Reggie."
"I know."
The two brothers locked eyes with each other and simultaneously leaned into the Pensive.
In they went.
Down they go. So, what will the boys see in Regulus' memory?
I had a great time writing this chapter. It was a whole lot of fun.
Readers, be a darling and please review!